BOOK OF THE MONTH: APRIL 2018

Better Than Before: What I Learned About Making and Breaking Habits

By Gretchen Rubin

ABOUT THE BOOK

Habits are the invisible architecture of everyday life and there’s no shortage of expert advice on how to change them. But as we know from tough experience, there’s no magic, one-size-fits-all solution for everything, whether that’s to lose weight, get up earlier, drink less, stop checking our phone or prep our meals. In this book Rubin reveals the true secret to habit change is that first we must know ourselves. So, whether are you an Upholder, an Obliger, a Questioner or a Rebel, once you can shape your habits to suit yourself it’s possible to find success, even if you’ve failed before.

We all have a habit (or two!) we’d like to kick and this book is proof that it’s not all about willpower. Plus, it starts with an awesome personality quiz, and who doesn’t love one of those?

Author Rubin told me: “What I want people to take away from this book is that there’s no magic, one-size-fits-all solution. There’s no one “best” habit. Some people do better when they stay up late, and some people, when they get up early. Some people thrive in an atmosphere of simplicity and order; others thrive in an atmosphere of buzz, abundance, and overflow. Some people resist temptation best by giving up something (chocolate, Words with Friends) altogether, some do best when they indulge in moderation. We all need to find the habits that work for us. I try to help readers understand all the different ways that habits can be structured, so they can tailor their habits to themselves, rather than trying to cram themselves into the ways that other people think “should” work.”

THE HABITS MANIFESTO by Gretchen Rubin

💫 What we do every day matters more than what we do once in a while.

💫 Make it easy to do right and hard to go wrong.

💫 Focus on actions, not outcomes.

💫 By giving something up, we may gain.

💫 Things often get harder before they get easier.

💫 When we give more TO ourselves, we can ask more FROM ourselves.

💫 We're not very different from other people, but those differences are very important.

💫 It's easier to change our surroundings than ourselves.

💫 We can't make people change, but when we change, others may change.

💫 We should make sure the things we do to feel BETTER don't make us feel WORSE.

💫 We manage what we monitor.

💫 Once we're ready to begin, begin now.

"Habits are the invisible architecture of daily life. We repeat about 40 percent of our behaviour almost daily, so our habits shape our existence, and out future. If we change our habits, we change our lives." - Gretchen Rubin

ABOUT AUTHOR Gretchen rubin

p/c: Andy Ryan

Gretchen Rubin is one of today’s most influential and thought-provoking observers of happiness and human nature. She’s known for her ability to distill and convey complex ideas with humor and clarity, in a way that’s accessible to a wide audience. She’s the author of many books, including the blockbuster New York Times bestsellers The Four Tendencies, Better Than Before, and The Happiness Project. She has an enormous readership, both in print and online, and her books have sold almost three million copies worldwide, in more than thirty languages. (The Happiness Projectspent two years on the bestseller list.)